Ksenia Makarova (Russia) and Natalia Popova (Ukrainian Natl champ) are the only ones I'm sure of. I haven't been able to find a link posting all the competitors. A young friend of mine is competing at Sr level for the first time -- nerve wracking!

I went to the Ladies FS Saturday night! Still don't know who won, tho.

Ksenia looked wonderful but she popped quite a few jumps. That really surprised me because I have rarely seen her miss jumps in practice (except for learning the new ones. I know she worked really hard on the 3L this year.)

Natalia is a beautiful skater, too, and much improved since I last saw her skate.

There was a local girl, Joelle? I think? She did quite well in her FS. She showed some connection to her music, which most of the other girls simply did not. They could have been skating to anything.

2 of the 10 skaters withdrew from the competition, which made me sad!

And I can't help but think there should be a level about Senior, LOL. There is such a contrast between the Ksenias of the world, and the Senior ladies who have just reached that level. Hard to believe they are all the same level when the quality of skating is so vastly different.

And I can't help but think there should be a level about Senior, LOL. There is such a contrast between the Ksenias of the world, and the Senior ladies who have just reached that level. Hard to believe they are all the same level when the quality of skating is so vastly different.

I know! I've watched a few of these local events. The disparity is quite shocking, especially when you compare elites to those who are finishing out their skating before college or just deciding that the elites is something they choose not to pursue. Still, fun to know that each family is proud of their skater's work thus far; I tend to imagine all the early morning trips to the rink etc . . . it's is heartwarming. Plus, to compete in an event where you can say you skated against a Ksenia (or Christina or Rachael or fill in the blank) is a pretty great thing! IMHO, it's what makes the locals a fun event to attend! JW